Arthur John Squires - much of his history, handwritten accounts, marriage certificate etc are at present in Livingstone with Adrienne and his Diaries are in the National Archives in Harare (These were loaned by Auntie Dolly and now they won't give them back - Betty & Jenny have tried).

Arthur Squires came from a Military family - his father was an Aldershot man and the family lived nearby. I will have to look up his exact date of birth when next I go up to Livingstone.

In 1887 he travelled out to South Africa with Edward Sturman, courtesy of the British Colonial service to assess fieldwork being done in the Cape Colony. They both returned to South Africa in 1889. Squires became Chief Engineer for the Transvaal and was asked to take the telegraph trunk route through to Gubulawayo for Rhodes. In Feb. 1890 Rhodes rode in to camp near the Tuli Block. When told that it would only take another 8 days before reaching Lobengula's Kraal, which now was also a staging post for missionaries and speculators, Rhodes boldly told him that if he did get there in 8 days, he could peg a farm as Rudd had signed a concession with the King. Rhodes was determined that Matabeland and Mashonaland should be annexed for Britain and he wanted the first trunk route through to Gubulawayo before he sent up the Pioneer column in Sept 1890. Grandpa Rudland was with this first pioneer column but only stayed three months at this stage.

True to his word Rhodes allowed Squires to peg a farm out at Khami ruins. This was never farmed properly and was sold after his death by Mabel. The money she acquired for this farm formed the basis of the inheritance for Winnie and Dolly in later years.

On his return to the Transvaal Squires continued as Chief Engineer from March 1890. Squires was asked to continue the work he had started by taking the telegraph trunk route through to Mashonaland. During this period he had no leave from 1890 till 1905. His health suffered drastically from Malaria and dysentery according to his letters to the Home Office in Britain requesting sick leave (which wasn't granted). During the Anglo Boer War Granny May told me that he had been seconded to the Natal Carbineers but I have been unable to verify this with their archives and think that he may have only been in Natal for about three months as the Commander said that their history indicated that men were being seconded from other areas for short periods only, during an intensification of fighting.[? my information was that they married on 5.3.1907 in Bulawayo]They were married in 1905 and were posted to Northern Rhodesia. Granny May always said they crossed in the Blondin Basket before the bridge was finished. Her story was that the basket got stuck with her in it, half way across and it took ? hour to start moving again. She said it was a most frightening experience. The dates are born out by a photo Adrienne has inherited with her tearoom, which gives the date of completion of the middle span and opening of the Bridge, as 1906. After their marriage they set up house in Livingstone, which was the base from which all governing was done in the Northern Territory at that time.

Squires continued the extension of the Telegraph trunk route through Northern Rhodesia and was away for long periods of time. In 1918 he suffered his third bout of Black Water Fever (a very serious form of Malaria) whilst up in the Fort Jameson area. He was doctored by the local Nyanga or Herbalist and after three months returned to Livingstone. By this time his health was very poor and when he contracted the 1918 Asian 'Flu, he had no resources with which to fight it. He died on the 3rd November 1918 and is buried in the Livingstone Cemetery, along side three other men who died on the same day from the epidemic. One was his great friend who was the Senior Electrical Engineer in charge of the Power station. They are buried alongside each other and Adrienne has been tending to their graves and has replanted grass and flowers.

Lucy wrote: 'I intend at some time to collect my father's ashes from the Bulawayo Garden of Remembrance and will bury Winnie and Ralph Sturman together with Squires.'